Jagdpanzer IV
The Jagdpanzer IV '''(ordnance inventory designation '''Sd. Kfz. 162) was a German tank destroyer built upon the chassis of the modified Panzer IV medium tank, known for its powerful anti-tank gun version of the Panther mounted on a tank destroyer chassis. Background After the defeat in the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942, Jagdpanzer IV was developed to replace the StuG III, with the main purpose of mounting 100 mm of frontal armor and armed with a 7.5 cm PaK 42 L/70 Anti-Tank Gun 'from the Panther. Although Heinz Guderian, Inspector-General of the German Armored Force, disagreed with this project as the StuG III was still very capable for its classes as assault gun / tank destroyer, and a new tank destroyer would only divert useful resources. Panzer IV chassis was used to build the Jagdpanzer IV, with its vertical plates were now sloped and reinforced with 80 mm frontal armor in its main hull and superstructure. Due to lack of supplies, the first batch of the tank ('Jagdpanzer IV/48) was equipped with a''' 7.5 cm'' ''PaK 39 L/48'. After all supplies were available, the initial batch of the tank ('Jagdpanzer IV/70') was equipped with an improved '''7.5 cm PaK 42 L/70' and designated as the main variant of the Jagdpanzer IV. The gun was initially fitted with a muzzle brake, but was remove because the gun was so close with the ground, and firing would cause large clouds of dust from its muzzle, exposing its position and temporarily limiting its sight. About 2,000 Jagdpanzer IVs with L/48 and L/70 variants were produced. Jagdpanzer IV had a good improvement over earlier tank destroyers, that had large guns fitted on small hulls, requiring a rather big superstructure, and some of them were thinly armored and with open fighting compartment, exposing their crew to incoming enemy fire. Although Jagdpanzer IV was a problem because its heavy armor, and therefore the long gun fitted in the forward section of the hull made the vehicle very heavy on front, resulting decreased mobility in rough terrain, which led its crew to nickname it Guderian-ente (Guderian's Duck). It was later improved by fitting Schürzen spaced armor on its side armor to counter incoming shaped charge attack. Serving both on the Western Front and on the Eastern Front, the Jagdpanzer IV''' nonetheless performed well until the end of the war. In Girls Und Panzer Kuromorimine Girls High School has numerous amount of Jagdpanzer IV/70s, designated as a tank sniper, attacking enemies from a distance with its low silhouette and accurate gun. They served as active tank destroyers with overwhelming number alongside the Panther during the finals against Ooarai Girls High School. They were seen ambushing the Ooarai tank formation during the initial phase of the battle, having managed to make Ooarai tanks retreating to the hill. After the battle is going on the hill, one of Jagdpanzer IVs was knocked out due to opposing Turtle Team's Hetzer. They were seen again, trying to break through Leopon's Tiger (P) blockade. While trying to push through, one of Jagdpanzer IVs was knocked out again by a front shot from the Tiger (P)'s 8.8 cm. An official document suggests that Koume Akaboshi - The girl who thanked Miho Nishizumi for having saved her from drowning - fought on a Jagdpanzer IV/70 during the game against Ooarai Girls High School. Though it does contradict the manga which shows her being in command of a Panther. Tank Specification * '''Weight : 25.8 tons * Length : 8.5 m * Width : 3.17 m * Height : 1.85 m * Main Armament : '''1 x 7.5 cm PaK 42 L/70 Anti-Tank Gun * '''Secondary Armament : 1 x 7.92 mm MG 34 Machine Gun * Hull Armor / Superstructure Armor : ** Front : 80 mm / 80 mm ** Sides : 30 mm / 40 mm ** Rear : 20 mm / 20 mm * Engine : 1 x Maybach HL 120 TRM 300 PS (296 hp) * Speed: 26 km/h References * Jagdpanzer IV (Wikipedia) * Jagdpanzer IV Specifications (WWIIVehicles) * Jagdpanzer IV Official Anime Web (GirlsUndPanzer) Gallery jaggdd.jpg|Kuromorimine Jagdpanzer IV in formation with Panthers Category:Tanks Category:German tanks